Please Like Me: sneak peek

Josh Thomas has a new comedy coming to ABC2 later this month, the six-part series Please Like Me, based on his stand-up material.

I’m liking what I have seen of this so far and it strikes a very sweet tone with his particularly nuanced way of looking at things. Here’s a sneak peek at the first scene, which precedes the opening credits and sees him breaking up with his girlfriend (Caitlin Stacey).

The series is directed by Matt Saville and features Debra Lawrence, Wade Briggs, Thomas Ward, Renee Lim, David Roberts, Judi Farr, and Thomas’ own scene-stealing dog ‘John’ appearing as himself -with no acting lessons.

It begins with a double episode 9:30pm Thursday 28 February ABC2.

When Josh’s girlfriend, Claire, dumps him and tells him she’s pretty sure he’s gay, he’s mostly worried that the sundae for two that’s just arrived at their table is suddenly pretty humiliating.

Josh seeks out his best mate Tom who is planning to dump his own overbearing girlfriend – and Josh’s nemesis – Niamh.

They’re interrupted when Tom’s good looking colleague Geoffrey arrives. Geoffrey is upset and in need of someone to talk to. Josh has no idea how to deal with emotions, but he does know where the pop rocks are kept, so he and Geoffrey hit it off immediately.

When Geoffrey not only invites himself to dinner, but also invites himself to stay for the night, Josh is terrified.

In the morning, as Josh tries to process a BIG night in his adult life, he discovers his mother Rose has overdosed on painkillers and is in hospital.

With his mum in a fragile state, it looks like Josh might have to move back in to the family home to keep an eye on her.

Josh’s dad Alan is so convinced he’s responsible for his ex-wife’s predicament he insists on dropping his younger girlfriend Mae at the corner store before visiting Josh at the family home, in case he upsets Rose.

Josh seems to be taking a different approach to his mum’s recovery, and after throwing things at her to get her out of bed, he leaves her at her psychiatrist’s appointment and heads off to visit Tom at his office. He runs into Geoffrey, who is keen to pick up where they left off and invites Josh out on a date.

As endearing as Josh is, that narration is a real exercise in patience. I don’t mind the way that he speaks naturally, but I can imagine that his narrations would put off even the most Josh-tolerant of viewers.

The beauty of humour is that even the poorest of actors can give a good performance if they are naturally enthusiastic in their role. Due to the artificial nature of the non-diegetic monologue, it just doesn’t work here as it only highlights the extent of Josh’s inability to act.

This looks great! Thomas’ self-deprecitation and awkwardness should translate well into a series. Unfortunately, this series also highlights the complete and utter lack of invest by any of the other channels in Australian half an hour comedy. Also, why did the synopsis give away the whole first episode?